Does He Understand Flight, the Pale One?
by Genevieve Kelly
Summary: Robin Hood and his men are all surprised when they rescue who appears to be a stranger travelling alone through Sherwood Forest from a few of the Sheriff of Nottingham's men, only to find that this traveler is no stranger. This story takes place immediately after the first episode of season three, after Brother Tuck is introduced and before Kate comes into the show's storyline.
1. Chapter 1

Does He Understand Flight, the Pale One?

Chapter One

It was late one afternoon and the sun was beginning to set deep within Sherwood Forest, home of Robin Hood and his band of thieves. All was quiet as what appeared to be a lone traveler wearing a hooded cloak and driving a cart was trying to pass through without trouble, knowing just how dangerous these woods could be, or more likely how dangerous those who lived there could be to a complete stranger should the stranger be carrying money intended for lining the Sheriff of Nottingham's pockets.

Unfortunately trouble came, though not in the form of the outlaws expected. A small group of the Sheriff's soldiers on horseback came riding through on the same path as the traveler and upon seeing that the stranger to these woods was alone, the three men slowed their animals and turned back to bring the horse pulling the cart to a stop, while the outsider, whose face remained hidden beneath the cloak, stayed seated.

One of the soldiers spoke up first saying coolly, "It isn't wise to drive a wagon through this forest all alone. There are thieves and killers that live amongst these trees."

The traveler wearily, yet firmly replied, "The only thieves and killers I see are the men standing before me and keeping me from my journey. Let me pass, or I promise you, you will wish that you had."

"Who are you to speak to the Sheriff's men like that?" another of the men responded angrily as he grabbed hold of the stranger's wrists and roughly pulled him down to the ground, then swiftly yanked off the hood so that they could see who they were speaking to.

"You're a woman?" the same soldier stated in surprise upon seeing the stranger's face and eyes as she stared up at him coldly, despite the pain she felt as his grip tightened on her.

The third soldier dismounted from his horse and moved to stand beside his comrades as he added, "She is a Saracen. What kind of journey brings filth such as you here to our country, woman? Your kind does not belong here."

The Saracen finally pulled her wrist free from the man's grasp and slowly stood as she heartbreakingly answered, "I have come to bury my husband. I may be from the Holy Land, but he is English and once lived here in Sherwood Forest. It is where he would wish his body to be laid to rest, now that he has passed on."

"Oh really, well we'll just see about that," one of the men replied again cruelly as he moved toward the back of the wagon and was about to pull back the blankets covering the body until the traveler quickly rushed to stand between them and the cart to prevent them from doing so.

"No stop!" she called out. "You cannot touch him. Don't even get near him or you will risk falling ill as he did; risk death. Is that what you want? My husband died of the plague and though he was a strong man, he could not fight it off. He died slowly and in agony. I doubt you want to die the same way."

The man who attempted to go near the cart swiftly backed away as he glanced over at her and responded worryingly, "If he really died of the plague, how is it that you're still alive and unaffected?"

She sadly answered, "Believe me, I have asked Allah the same question many times and still have yet to receive any answer."

"I see," the soldier, who appeared to have taken charge said curtly, then turned to the other men and motioned for them to do as he ordered. "Set fire to the wagon and be sure that the body burns, as well as everything else. We will bring the woman back with us to the castle, to the Sheriff. He will want to speak to her himself about how she survived when few others live."

The Saracen tried to fight against the men when they swiftly took her prisoner as she cried out in fear, "No! You can't… Please! No!"

As soon as one of the men lit one of their torches, which they carried with them in case night fell before they could return to the palace, and was about to touch the fire to the cart, a flock of white pigeons suddenly flew above their heads as an arrow soared dangerously close past the soldier's cheek, slicing him as it did, and became embedded into the soldier's hand, successfully knocking the torch to the ground before the fire could burn the wagon carrying the precious load.

The man screamed in pain as he and the others, including the woman, all turned around in shock to see at least five bandits as they began to charge at them from the trees, the leader of the group wielding a bow as he notched another arrow and let it fly, this time hitting the man who was holding the Saracen in his shoulder to get him to release her.

One of the soldiers shouted out, "Robin Hood! Kill them!"

"I think you lot are a bit outnumbered," Allan replied as he easily knocked one of the wounded men down by striking his head with the hilt of his sword, while John fought against the man with an arrow in one hand, his own sword in the other, and Much worked to put out the fire that burned hotter once it hit the ground. "Just go ahead and kill him already, John."

"There's no need to kill them," Robin responded coolly as he forced his own attacker, the soldier who took charge of the men, back against the side of the wagon, by thrusting the tip of his blade up against his throat. "Not unless they leave us with no other option. Go back to Nottingham to tend to your wounds and tell Vaisey whatever you wish, but if you, or anymore of the Sheriff's men return to Sherwood and try to threaten one of my friends again, my men and I will kill all of you. Am I making myself clear?"

The two men still standing upright quickly made their way over to their third to help him off the ground, glared back at Robin Hood and his men, and finally took off running through the woods toward Nottingham without their horses, then the woman let out a sigh of relief while she looked at the woodsmen now standing before her and ran into the leader's arms as she exclaimed, "Robin! Thank Allah, I have found you."

Robin hugged her back tightly as he whispered, "Djaq. It is good to see you again. But so soon?"

"Is it true?" Much asked sadly as he looked at their Saracen friend in confusion. "Is Will really dead?"

"Will!" she suddenly cried out again as she pushed away from Robin and ran back to the cart, then quickly climbed up into it to pull back the blankets, as the men looked on, even more confused than before.

As she looked fearfully upon the unconscious and severely ill man whom she loved very deeply and had married only two weeks ago while still in the Holy Land, running her hands gently along his face and his chest, she answered worryingly, "He is still alive, but only just. I only told the Sheriff's men he died of the plague…"

Brother Tuck moved over to the wagon and offered his help to the woman he did not yet know as he finished for her, "In order to keep them back and from learning that he was still among the living, very smart thinking."

"Yeah, only until it backfired and they tried to finish him off anyway by setting the cart on fire," Much replied gruffly, getting rewarded with an immediate punch to his shoulder from John for his momentary lack of sympathy, who then also moved to the wagon as he, Tuck, and Djaq carefully pulled Will down from the wagon so that they would be free to take care of him properly once they arrived back at the outlaws' camp just over the hill from where the previous battle took place.

"So, how did this happen?" Robin asked their friend as he helped Djaq walk, having noticed how exhausted she was, while John carried Will gently within his arms. "How long ago…?"

Tears fell as she responded sadly, "It's a long story. I will explain, but first I need to tend to his fever and his wounds."

Robin nodded as he looked between his men, then stopped his eyes upon the deathly still form of Will Scarlett and answered, "Of course. You both are safe here, Djaq. No matter what it is you're running from, you're safe. And if we can, I promise you we will make those responsible for this pay."


	2. Chapter 2

Does He Understand Flight, the Pale One?

Chapter Two

"Does he understand flight?" Djaq whispered as she gently caressed her husband's forehead, face, and neck with a warm, damp towel in hope of bringing down his raging fever enough to make him a bit more comfortable, while Robin looked on sadly and John and Brother Tuck both tended to the worst of his multiple wounds as far as they could tell; a knife wound through Will's upper left shoulder and multiple deep lacerations all across his chest and stomach from being whipped. "That is what Bassam asked me when we first arrived in the Holy Land less than three months ago, before we all went to see King Richard at his camp in the desert. He wanted to know if Will truly understood my dream, to be able to fly in the sky alongside his beautiful birds, not literally of course. I told Bassam that he does, but I never really realized before just how much."

"Can you share with us what happened, Djaq?" Robin asked when their only female companion paused, then didn't say another word as Much and Allan joined them. "What brings you back here to England so soon and with Will in this condition?"

John and Tuck carefully rolled Will over so that they could take care of the lashes across the young man's back, which looked the same as his front, then the Saracen spoke again responding sadly, "The attack came on the eve of our marriage, Will's and mine. We were asleep when several of Salah ad Din's men pillaged Bassam's home, having somehow learned that Bassam had helped Robin Hood help King Richard and that we were harboring an Englishman. They tore everything apart and stole the little we had. Our friends began to fight against the soldiers first before Will and I could join them. Most of them were struck down, others were captured and taken prisoner as the men set fire to what was left. Will and I fought our way free, as did Bassam and a few others, and we all ran, until Will stopped and ordered us to keep going, while he turned around and ran back inside to free the birds before the fire could consume our home. I tried to stop him, but…"

When she couldn't continue any longer, John finished for her as he said, "He was taken prisoner as well and tortured. How long before you were able to find him?"

"Nine days later," she answered, no longer trying to hold back the tears that fell down her face. "We had no horses to follow after Salah ad Din's men. There were so few of us left and we needed time to recover. I barely slept, barely ate. I searched for Will day and night with help from Bassam and a few others. When we finally found the soldiers' camp, only one other prisoner aside from Will was still alive, each of them having suffered the same kinds of torment until their bodies betrayed them. Bassam helped me to free him and helped me get to the border of Jerusalem where he and the others with us left us to return home so they could rebuild, knowing that they would never be welcome in England. We couldn't return, especially if any of the men who attacked us had chosen to pursue us. I know it was crazy, but I just knew that I had to return Will here to his homeland. He would wish to be among each of us should he pass. I am doing all I can for him, but… I fear he is most definitely in Allah's hands now."

"Do not lose your faith in your husband's strength or in God's," the newest member to their band of thieves replied as he placed a gentle hand upon her shoulder for reassurance. "Should he pass on, it will not be because of anything you have or have not done."

Realizing that the warrior priest and former companions had not yet been introduced, Robin spoke up again saying, "Djaq, I'd like you to meet Brother Tuck, once a priest until he was expelled from his order for disagreeing with the corruption among them as well as for his outspoken views. The man saved my life and reminded me why I fight, for England and for its people."

Djaq smiled weakly at the stranger and then responded, "It is an honor to meet you, friend. I am Djaq, or to my husband, I am Saffiya. He is Will Scarlett, the bravest and kindest man I know."

"The honor is all mine," Tuck answered sincerely. "Your friends have spoken of you, how you fought alongside Robin Hood, then remained behind in the Holy Land to start a new life together."

"Yes, only another mistake I should have never made," she replied coldly. "Will would give, has given everything, to assure what he believed to be my every happiness. I love Bassam's birds, but I would rather have given them all up if it meant Will's welfare. If he had not gone back to rescue them for me…"

Much replied quickly, "There is no guarantee that you both would have escaped with your lives either way. You cannot keep blaming yourself."

John nodded his head in agreement and responded, "Much is right. Looking back will do you no good. All you can do now is move forward and continue to be your husband's strength as we all will be as well."

"I am scared," the Saracen answered fearfully as she lowered her head to rest it on top of his. "When I first found him, strung up between two posts within the soldiers' camp, I thought he was dead. That I had arrived too late. What will I do if he doesn't live? I am nothing without him."

"You're wrong," Robin replied firmly. "You were a brave warrior even before you met all of us and before you fell in love with Will. You will find that courage again whether he lives or dies. Do not ever sell yourself short. It isn't you. As for Will, his condition may be grave, but he has survived this long after travelling across perilous terrain so that you both could return home to where you belong. I doubt Salah ad Din's men chose to follow you all the way here to Sherwood Forest, but I assure you that if they have, we will not allow them to harm you or him again. Now, you need to rest as badly as he does. We will look after you. You are home."


	3. Chapter 3

Does He Understand Flight, the Pale One?

Chapter Three

Djaq awoke a few hours later, after finally succumbing to sleep upon lying down beside her husband after constant prodding from her friends. When she opened her eyes, she found John still sitting over Will while continuing his administrations, wiping down his body with a cool rag in hope of bringing down his fever and changing his bandages when needed. Djaq sat up slowly and moved closer to them as she picked up a wooden cup, filled it with water from one of the men's flasks, then put it gently to her husband's lips in hope of getting the cool water down him.

She kept her eyes trained on the man whom she loved, but spoke to John as she asked quietly, "Have you been here all along?"

The big man nodded and answered, "It was no trouble. Robin and the others left the camp for awhile. They had business to attend to."

"Is there trouble?" she asked again nervously.

"No, not at all," he replied with a smile as he turned his head to look at the young woman. "They just went to cause trouble for the Sheriff and Gisborne. For most of them, it can still be like fun and games."

The Saracen understood what he meant as she responded, "Yes, making trouble at their expense never was boring. How is Robin doing? Has he mourned Marian properly?"

John nodded as he answered, "He has now I believe. He is still grieving, but at least he has moved on from wanting revenge on Gisborne. I mean, we all want to destroy them once and for all, but what I mean is that Robin has finally returned to his old self. Revenge isn't the only thing he thinks about now."

"That is good," she replied and slowly began to run her fingers through Will's hair as she watched John continue to care for him. "I tried to tend to him the best I could as we fled Salah ad Din's soldiers' camp, but there was very little I could do. He was in a bad way. I applied what little poultice I had to his wounds, then wrapped him in bandages and tried to get all the water into him as I could."

"That just goes to show how strong Will Scarlett really is," he responded. "You saved his life, of that I am certain. I never thought I would miss the two of you so much when we left your friend's home in Jerusalem to return here, but it turns out that I did, more than I would ever care to admit to anyone else."

Djaq smiled for the first time in weeks as she answered, "It is wonderful to see you again too, John Little. Your son must be very proud of his father. Will and I may not be your children, but you always treated us as though we were and we're very proud of you. Have you seen Bassam's birds at all since earlier this evening?"

John shook his head and replied, "I am afraid not, but I haven't left this shelter at all since I began to treat him. They distracted the Sheriff's men long enough for us to get to you, but they kept flying."

"That's all right," she responded calmly as she carefully lifted her husband's upper body up off the ground with John's help in order to look over the wounds across his back to make sure that they hadn't become any more infected. "They're around here somewhere. Somehow, they always seem to know where I am and they stay close by."

"They must love you as much as you love them," the big man answered as he looked toward the skies, then put his attention back on the young man in his arms. "Has Will awakened at all since you found him?"

They gently laid him back down, seeming satisfied that he was no worse off, and then she replied sadly, "Only for a brief moment. And even then I don't believe that he saw me. I doubt he knows that he's safe and no longer a prisoner of those soldiers."

He nodded as he responded, "No, I suppose not. But he isn't and he is safe. You made sure of that. You should be proud of yourself too."

"I can't be until I know for sure that he will recover, that my efforts were not for naught," the woman answered solemnly. "Thank you John, for helping me care for him."

"There isn't any place else for me to be," he said sincerely and then stood up to leave the shelter for only a few minutes to refill the few flasks with water from the river nearby that were now empty.

Djaq watched the strong man leave, turned back to look down at the man she loved as she laid once again beside him, placing her head gently over his good shoulder and began to stroke his face, then whispered in his ear, "You're going to be alright, my love. Just as long as you don't stop fighting. I won't let you give up, do you hear me? You're safe now."

It was then that Robin entered the shelter and was happy to see their old friend awake as she sat up again nervously, then he stated, "It is good to see you awake again. How are you feeling?"

"Better, more rested than before," the Saracen replied quietly.

"That's good," the leader of their band of thieves responded. "And Will? Has his fever gone down at all?"

She simply shook her head and after another minute spoke up saying, "If anything, he's worsened. There is nothing more I can do, but try to make him as comfortable as possible and wait. It's killing me."

Robin nodded and then said again, "We all know how you feel. He's a brother to all of us. That reminds me, I sent Allan to Scarborough to find Luke. I thought it best that his brother be here for him."

"I cannot believe I didn't even think of Luke this whole time," Djaq answered sadly. "I don't… Thank you, Robin. You're right. Will is all Luke has left. He would never forgive me for stealing his brother away from him, especially if Will were to die."

"I think that Luke will be happy to learn that he's come home," the archer replied as he stood again and patted her shoulder. "I will let you know when he arrives. Until then, come out and have something to eat. Much is making something for us to eat. It won't be great, but it will give you your strength back."

She nodded and rose to her feet with his help, then stated, "So long as it isn't his rabbit stew again, any kind of food sounds wonderful."

Robin laughed and responded, "You might want to try it before you make that assumption. Come on. And don't worry about Will. John will return from the river in a few minutes and will continue to take care of him for you. He may not admit it openly, but I think he always thought of him like another son. It was hard on him when you both decided to remain in Jerusalem, but he was happy for you. It will be good to have you both fighting by our sides once again."


	4. Chapter 4

Does He Understand Flight, the Pale One?

Chapter Four

 _"We're under attack!" Djaq cried out in fear as she ran to the window to their bedroom to find out why her friends were all shouting and screaming below them. "We have to help them!"_

 _"You go and find Bassam," Will replied urgently as he ran after her down the stairs and immediately jumped between the woman he loved and a Saracen soldier who tried to attack her, taking the man down with a single thrust of one of his axes to his chest, then charged another warrior as he tried to sneak up on another of their wedding guests. "I will help get as many of our friends to safety."_

 _He saw his new wife run off while she fought against another attacker and once he saw that she was holding her own, Will continued to fight himself against the soldiers, attacking anyone who tried to kill Djaq's people, now his own. It was then that he caught sight of one of the servants who worked for Bassam as she was fighting with another of the men who began to set fire to his home._

 _As he fought a more formidable opponent, who attacked him as Will tried to go to her aid, he heard the maid pleading as she cried out, "Please! This wasn't how this was supposed to be! You were only supposed to send a few of your soldiers here to arrest the Englishman and then leave. You can't burn down our home or continue to kill my friends and family!"_

 _Unaware of Will in the distance, the warrior thrust his sword through the woman's belly as he answered, "We can't allow our own people think that it is all right to shelter one of our enemies. This is what happens to traitors."_

 _"Wh… why?" she asked weakly after Will finally cut down his own attacker, then raced to the dying woman and pulled her into his arms as he looked into her eyes sadly. "Why did you… come here? Why should we have to suffer… because of you?"_

 _"I'm so sorry," Will responded with deep remorse as her eyes closed and her body became limp in his arms._

 _He carefully laid her all the way down to the ground and charged another of the Saracen soldiers more vigorously, and then another, as Djaq finally appeared again, followed closely by Bassam and his wife, then she called out, "Will! Are you…? We must leave, now!"_

 _Bassam quickly added, "Our home is burning to the ground. There is nothing more we can do here. Come, I know a passage the soldiers will not see us leave from."_

 _"What about your people?" Will asked as he glanced between the woman he loved and the father figure._

 _"Most of them are either dead or the men have taken them prisoners," the older man replied quickly as he led them both deeper through the house and to a small passageway hidden inside the home's pantry. "If we don't leave now, we will either die or become prisoners ourselves. I will not have that for Saffiya."_

 _Just as they were about to be free, Will suddenly grabbed his wife and kissed her deeply, then ordered firmly, "Keep running and don't look back. I have to free the birds. Don't worry, my love. I will be alright. But if we leave, they will all die and there is not enough beauty in this world to let that happen. I will find you, Saffiya. I promise."_

 _Djaq tried to protest as Will ran away from her while Bassam continued to pull her away from her husband and she eventually gave in and continued to follow the older man. Will ran through the fire to where the white pigeons were caged and without thought, freed them as quickly as he could so that the fire could not consume them._

 _By the time he broke open the last of the cages and had finished his task at hand, a Saracen soldier tried to sneak up behind Robin Hood's man to attack him. Will was able to defect the first blow, but his back was against the wall behind him and there was no room for him to maneuver in order to break free himself._

 _When the man had Will pinned against the wall with a blade to his throat, while he struggled to keep its sharp edge from cutting into him, another of the soldiers came in to help his comrade as he swiftly struck Will's temple with the hilt of his own sword, successfully knocking the Englishman unconscious._

Will suddenly gasped as he awoke late into the next day, startling both Djaq and Luke who were sitting beside the carpenter watching over him and Djaq exclaimed fearfully, "Will! It is all right! You are safe again. You're safe, I found you. Will!"

"What's wrong with him?" Luke asked in worry when his brother was unable to focus on anyone or anything. "Tell me!"

"He may be awake, but he is not lucid," Brother Tuck answered as he came to sit between the two brothers in order to help Djaq hold Will down. "I have seen this before, by men and woman who have suffered traumatic experiences. He's terrified and confuse…"

The priest was interrupted as Will started to mutter weakly, "So… sorry. I'm so s… sorry, Hazar. My fault. It's all m… fault. Saffiya?"

Robin knelt down to become eye level with his friends as he looked over at Djaq and asked, "Do you have any idea what he might be talking about?"

"No, I… It doesn't make any sense," she responded worryingly. "Hazar was the name of one of the women who served in Bassam's house. I do not know why he would feel any guilt toward her or for anything else."

Flashback…

 _"Come Saffiya, we must go from here," Bassam said sadly. "He will find us. And then once they are gone, we must tend to the dead."_

 _She looked on at the remainder of the attack on their home from a rooftop in the distance, then when it appeared that the men were leaving, Djaq watched in horror as two of the soldiers carried her husband out between them and she attempted to run to him until Bassam swiftly pulled her back, spinning her around to look at him as he spoke again saying, "There is nothing you can do for the pale one now, Saffiya. I am so sorry, but he knew what he was risking when he went back."_

 _Djaq struggled within the man's grasp as she sobbed, "No! I cannot just let them take him. Let me go, please!"_

 _"If I do, I will lose you too and you know that Will would not want that!" Bassam replied angrily in order to get her to stop fighting him. "We will find him, no matter how long it takes. I will help you find him, I promise, but now is not the time. Those soldiers have taken him prisoner, which gives us time. Please Saffiya."_

 _Back inside what little was left of Bassam's house…_

 _"Ahmed, Munier, Hazar, and Jessamyn… all dead," Djaq whispered reverently. "And many more. Most of our friends, those who worked for us, all dead on mine and Will's wedding night. And my husband was captured. How did this happen, Bassam? Why did this have to happen?"_

 _The man of the house answered, "Only Allah knows all that, little one."_

 _She shook her head and then responded, "That is not good enough for me. I will seek the truth, no matter how long it takes."_

End of flashback…

"I never did learn much more, other than where Salah ad Din's men had eventually taken Will and their other prisoners, as well as why they had attacked our home, but something must have happened between the time Will had split from us to save our birds to when he was taken prisoner," Djaq spoke again after she took a few minutes to try to think about what could possibly be tormenting her husband so deeply, that he would mutter these words in his current state. "Hazar was among the dead. As far as we could tell, she died in the fire. And as for what else he might be feeling guilt over…"

"It is doing us no good to speculate what might be troubling him," John replied after he took Tuck's place at the young man's side as he and Luke gently settled the older Scarlett brother down as he slowly fell back into unconsciousness. "We won't know anything until he truly wakes up, if he wakes up. His fever is worsening. If it does not come down soon…"

All of a sudden Luke cried out angrily, "Don't you give up on him! You have to save him. Our mother and father both died. I can't lose my brother too!"

Robin walked over to stand in front of Luke as he answered remorsefully, "I assure you Luke, we are all doing everything we can for Will."

"Did you kill the monsters who tortured him?" the young man asked coldly as he turned toward Djaq, glaring at her as Robin and Much held him back to keep him from striking out against the woman he saw was responsible for his brother's suffering, despite knowing it wasn't really her fault. "Did they pay for doing this to the man you claim you love or did you spare them because they were of your own kind?"

"Luke!" she called out after him as she started to go after him when Will's brother stormed out of the shelter until Robin stopped her. "I have to go talk to him."

Their leader shook his head as he responded calmly, "He's just angry and needs some time alone. Luke doesn't really believe that you're responsible for Will's condition, Djaq, but you're the only one here he can be angry at."

The woman nodded and stated, "I know. I am a Saracen after all. Right now, all Luke sees is the color of my skin and hears the accent in my voice, therefore he sees and hears the people who are really to at fault. I don't blame him for hating me. And the truth is, those men did not pay for their crimes. They weren't at their camp when Bassam and I found Will and the others. It appeared as though they simply abandoned the site and left their prisoners to die. Will needed me and I was far more concerned with making sure that he was safe. When he returns, reassure Luke that I will not give up on Will. If he wishes to speak to me, I will be happy to listen."


	5. Chapter 5

Does He Understand Flight, the Pale One?

Chapter Five

Inside the castle in Nottingham…

Upon receiving word from one of the soldiers under him that the Sheriff wanted to see him, Guy of Gisborne left the village he was buy overseeing the tax collection in and headed to the main hall where Vaisey was sitting upon King Richard's throne when his second in command entered, then immediately called out to the man shouting, "Gisborne, what took you so long? I've waited for you for nearly thirty minutes!"

Guy lowered his head in frustration as he responded, "I am sorry, Sir, but I had some business to attend to after last night's humiliation caused by Robin Hood and his men. I had to make sure that your men were given no more trouble by the villagers."

"Yes, about that… exactly what trouble did Hood cause you last night?" the Sheriff asked contemptuously. "You sent one of the men back to explain to me that those thieves had kept you from collecting my money, but I want to hear it from you."

"It's just that," the dark man replied coldly. "Those blasted outlaws charged into the village and fought me and my men until they robbed us of every penny we had already collected from other villages, then left those of us they didn't kill tied up to post in the middle of the square so that we could watch as they divvied out the tax money back to them. We were lucky to have kept our clothes."

Vaisey glared at him as he sneered and answered, "You were lucky to have kept your heads. There are only five men. Why is it that an entire army cannot defeat five men!"

Gisborne scoffed and then responded, "You would be interested to know that that Saracen woman from Hood's gang has rejoined their troupe since she and another of them remained behind in the Holy Land. Three of my men returned from another mission I sent them on proclaiming that they had been attacked by Hood in the forest when they had stopped a traveler on the road; that Saracen, whom Robin and his men protected."

"Great, so now there are six men, or five men and one woman," Nottingham replied mockingly. "Why the bloody hell should I care that the woman returned? What does one more matter to me? We still can't defeat them, no matter how many fighters they have!"

"It matters, because I believe we may have an opportunity to catch Hood and his men with their guards down," Guy answered coldly. "My men mentioned that the woman claimed her husband was dead. The way I remember it, she was in love with the other who remained in Jerusalem with her, the carpenter who fights with an ax. If they are in mourning…"

The Sheriff understood what his second in command was thinking, then responded, "You want to strike now while the iron is hot. I like it, but we cannot attack them wherever they may be hiding, seeing as we have no clue where the outlaws' camp is and even if we can draw them out by threatening any of the villagers, Robin Hood will then have the advantage over us."

Gisborne replied, "Actually, I know of someone who might know where their camp is hidden, or at least I have a good feeling that he will be able to find out. I have already sent him out in search of the outlaws."

"Who is this man and why do I not know about him?" Vaisey asked coldly. "I thought that I made it clear to you that you are to inform me of everything in regards to Robin Hood, as well as any plans you might get to bring him down?"

"You did, which is why I am informing you now," the dark man answered smugly. "The man is a bounty hunter. I knew him years ago when I fought in the crusades. I saved his life once, so he owes me a favor. The man arrived in Nottingham yesterday morning. He will do what I ask of him and you won't have to pay him a single penny."

The Sheriff smiled and stated, "I like him already. But I want to meet him, before he kills Robin Hood. In fact, I want to be there when he does."

Guy nodded as he said, "I told him just as much. It's as good as done. He will kill the others and leave our enemy until we can meet up with him."

Meanwhile…

"Excuse me, I was wondering if you could direct me to where I might meet up with Robin Hood and his friends?" a man asked as he walked up to a boy who was lying down in front of a large tree deep inside the forest while carving a design with a knife into a small piece of wood in his hands. "Do you know of him?"

"Of course I know of Robin Hood, but I don't know where he is," the young man responded coldly without turning his head. "The outlaw is very secretive about where he and his friends are hiding and rightly so. They have many enemies. It's why my brother's dying."

The man spoke again saying, "So that's what's troubling you, your brother is suffering because someone failed to protect him. Would you like to talk about it?"

The boy, who was no more than fourteen, finally looked up as he replied, "Not to a total stranger I don't. And what do you know about any of this? I suggest you get the hell out of here and leave me alone. There are more enemies out in these woods than just Robin Hood and his band of thieves."

"People whom I care about are hurting too and the only ones who can help them are Hood and his gang," the stranger lied. "Please, can't you find it in your heart to help me?"

"Not today I can't," Luke Scarlett answered sadly, then walked off deeper into the woods, leaving the man behind.


	6. Chapter 6

Does He Understand Flight, the Pale One?

Chapter Six

When Luke finally returned back to the outlaws' camp a few hours later, Much was the first one to see him as he quickly motioned to Robin, who then made his way over to Will's younger brother before he could go back inside the shelter where Djaq and John were still taking care of their ill friend; a never ending task. Luke attempted to simply push past him, but the leader of the band of thieves grabbed hold of him firmly and looked into the boy's eyes, sympathy appearing in his own.

"Listen, I can only imagine how angry you must be, and how scared you are for your brother, but right now Will needs you to be here for him with a calm mind and to know that Djaq is not the reason why he is suffering," Robin said quietly when he finally looked at the archer. "She loves Will and I know that she would have taken his place if she could have, without a doubt."

"Neither one of them would have had to suffer if she hadn't made my brother feel that some bloody pigeons were more important to her than he was!" Luke answered coldly and loud enough for everyone within the camp to hear. "Why couldn't he have just left with her, instead of going back? They all could have gotten away!"

John walked out of the shelter as he spoke up angrily saying, "Because, your brother wasn't just going back into the burning home to save those birds! He was saving those he loved. Will knew that those soldiers would see him re-enter Bassam's home and that they would focus on him instead of on those trying to flee. It worked. His wife, Bassam himself and his family, as well as a few others all survived because of his bravery and strength to do what was needed. Instead of being angry at Djaq or the pigeons he fought to free, show your brother empathy and be here for him the way he needs you to be."

Everyone stared at the big man in surprise, especially Luke, who then nodded and responded calmly, "You're right. Thank you."

"Is that really true?" Much asked after they watched the younger Scarlett take a moment to calm his temperament and then continue to walk back to the shelter where his brother was being taken care of, while John came over to stand with them. "Did Will really do what you just said he did?"

"Truthfully, I don't know if that is why he went back inside or not," John replied softly so that Luke wouldn't be able to overhear them. "I only said those things because I knew that that was what the boy needed to hear, something to might help him to see reason and to forgive Djaq. But I do believe that Will did see a way to protect those he loved and that he willingly put himself in harm's way to keep them safe. It is the kind of man he is."

Upon hearing John's words he said to her husband's brother, Djaq looked down at the man she loved and kissed him gently and then whispered, "I do believe John is right. And if it is true, then I am deeply touched, and angry at you too because you sacrificed yourself to keep me safe. Not really, I love you, you foolish man."

When Luke entered, at first he looked fearfully down at his brother for a few moments and then turned to look over at the Saracen woman as he stated sincerely, "Forgive me, Djaq. I was wrong to blame you for Will's suffering. I know how much he loves you and I can see how much you love him too. I'm angry and I'm scared, but it isn't right for me to treat you as though you're one of the monsters who did this to him. I'm very sorry."

"Thank you, Luke," she answered with a smile, then motioned for him to sit beside his brother. "And please, call me Saffiya. I don't blame you for your anger. I blamed myself plenty for allowing this to happen to him, but it won't do him any good. We simply need to focus on making him well again and I believe that he will be alright, in time."

"I should also thank you for bringing him home," the boy said again. "I missed him. When Robin sent word that he remained behind in the Holy Land with you, I was happy for him, but also angry at him for leaving me here alone."

Djaq looked at Luke in confusion as she asked, "Did you not receive Will's letter?"

Luke shook his head and responded, "No, I never received anything from him."

"Will sent you a detailed letter explaining everything as well as enough money for you to travel safely to the Holy Land to join us," she replied sincerely. "He never abandoned you, Luke. Will would never abandon you."

"I should never have doubted him," the younger man answered sadly. "His letter must have gotten lost."

Robin and the other men entered as Djaq responded, "Or perhaps it was stolen. First, somehow the Sheriff of Nottingham and Gisborne knew of our presence there in Jerusalem, allowing them to ambush us in the desert. Then, Salah ad Din knew that Bassam had helped us when seeking protection from our people so long as we remained in Jerusalem, the reason for him sending the Saracen soldiers to attack our home for harboring Englishmen. And finally, we learn that Will's letter went missing. All these things cannot be a coincidence. We must have had a spy within our home."

As Djaq gently placed her hand across her husband's forehead, then began to feel along his face and chest as she pulled away the old rags to look at his wounds, Allan spoke up saying, "I don't suppose that much matters now though, does it?"

"No, I don't suppose it doesn't," Robin replied, though not feeling quite as confident.

"Robin, I need some more herbs," Djaq stated worryingly. "I have run out. I wouldn't ask you to risk going into Nottingham with the Sheriff and Gisborne on high alert, but it appears that his infections are finally beginning to heal and without the herbs, I won't be able to keep his fever at bay."

Their leader nodded and answered, "You don't have to ask, Djaq. We'll go now. There was someone I needed to speak with anyway."

She responded, "Please, just be careful."

"Aren't I always?" he asked smugly, then became more serious as he looked amongst his men. "John, I'm going to need you with me. Brother Tuck…"

"Take everyone with you," Djaq replied quickly. "You will need their help to escape trouble if the Sheriff's men attack. Luke will stay here with Will and me. We'll be safe here inside our own camp."

Robin was about to say something more until Will suddenly struggled to speak as he opened his eyes as wide as he could, weakly calling out her name, "Saf… fiya? How… How are you… here? I did… didn't be… lieve I'd see…"

His wife gripped his hand as tightly as she dared to and tried to move her face into his line of sight as he quickly reclosed his eyes tightly and cut himself off when his pain flared up, then she exclaimed softly, "Will! It's all right, just breathe. You are safe now. And at home back in England, with Robin Hood. We're all here, including your brother."

"L… Luke?" he slurred as his eyes slowly looked around for sight of his brother as the younger Scarlett moved in closer and took his free hand as well.

"That's right," the fourteen year old answered fearfully as tears slipped out from the corners of his eyes. "I'm here. God, I thought I was going to lose you too, but you're going to be fine. Your wife and friends have been taking good care of you."

Will struggled to sit up until his brother and Djaq stopped him by keeping a firm hand on his chest, then he turned back toward the woman he loved as he asked again, "It's true? You're al… alright? And Bassam? The oth… others? Your birds?"

Robin slowly knelt down at the carpenter's feet and smiled as he said, "It's good to see you awake and more yourself again, caring for everyone else, except yourself."

"I'm just fine, as is Bassam and his family, a few others from our wedding night, and the pigeons too," she responded with a smile. "All thanks to you."

"We will leave the two of you alone with him, while we head into town," their leader spoke again quietly as he looked between Djaq and Luke, while he and the others all moved to leave the shelter. "We'll be back as soon as we can with the herbs you need."

She looked up at him and nodded, then once they were gone, she turned back to her husband and noticed his eyes were closed once again and that he was no longer conscious, then she gently caressed his cheek and stated quietly, "He will be very weak for awhile, but he's going to get better now, especially once they return with the herbs that I sent them out for."

Luke nodded and replied, "Thank you again, Djaq."

After what felt like in a long time, things finally appeared to be looking up for the band of thieves after the number of tragedies that have befallen them since they all became outlaws over two years ago for fighting against the injustice throughout England. Little did they know that trouble was about to find them again thanks to Gisborne's and the Sheriff's latest plot. Unbeknownst by Robin or the others as they left, a stranger was lurking outside of their camp, observing the outlaws from a safe distance after having searched for them since he had come to Nottingham as a favor to the traitor who had once saved his life long ago.


	7. Chapter 7

Does He Understand Flight, the Pale One?

Chapter Seven

When Robin, Much, John, Allan, and Tuck all arrived in Nottingham a few hours before sundown, they saw everything was busy as usual, as the street vendors were out selling food, cloth for clothes, as well as jewelry and accessories to those travelling through from other towns, or to anyone who could afford these things, which not many could thanks to the Sheriff and Guy of Gisborne, who stole their money and what little the people actually could afford.

When Robin spotted the person he had come into town to see, he quickly looked back at John and said, "You know better than any of us the kind of herbs Djaq needs. Take Brother Tuck with you. I have to see someone about what it means to steal from someone worse off than he is."

Allan looked at their leader quizzically as he asked, "If you're talking about talking to the Sheriff or Gisborne again, don't you think it's a little useless? How many times will it take for you to realize that they won't ever change?"

"Of course I'm not talking about them," Robin replied as he glared back at their friend who had once betrayed them until he saw his mistake and fought at their side once again. "I spoke with an old friend of my father's. He was robbed by someone claiming to be the Night Watchman."

"I can't believe someone would think they can impersonate Marian!" Much exclaimed in confusion. "Or at least who they believed her to be."

John added, "Whoever is doing so must be trying to destroy the Watchman's good name if he or she is stealing from the poor. Who is doing this?"

Robin responded, "Someone whom I don't believe is trying to sully her good name, only someone who is hungry and he certainly does love the theatrics."

"You don't mean…?" Allan began to ask, then cut himself off when their leader smiled.

"That's right, Nottingham's very own Fool," the thief answered smugly. "I caught sight of him when we came through here last night. He was still dressed in the Watchman's gear, without the mask. I didn't think much of it then until my father's friend mentioned he had been robbed. But this isn't like the Fool. We may not know him well, but he is an ally. He wouldn't steal from Nottingham's people unless he had a reason, a good reason. That is why I want to talk to him."

All of a sudden, the very man they were speaking about appeared behind the outlaws as he quickly replied, "I'm grateful that you would still defend me, though I give you reason to doubt me, Sir."

Much glared at him as he shouted, "You! How did you…? Master, we should do more with him than simply talk with him. I think we should deliver him right to the Sheriff so that they can arrest him."

"He doesn't really mean that," Robin responded as he looked over at the Fool, while John and Tuck walked off to get the supplies. "Much just doesn't like being snuck up on, or being surprised at all really. What are you doing? You robbed an old friend, who doesn't have hardly anything at all."

"Who didn't have anything at all, you mean?" the man answered cheekily.

They all looked at him quizzically as Robin asked, "What are you talking about?"

The Fool sighed and then replied, "Late yesterday afternoon, I was having me self a drink in a tavern and I happened to see Guy of Gisborne walk inside, then take a seat at a table along with your friend, as well as one other gent, the other whom I did not recognize. From the way he dress, he was clearly not from anywhere around here. Your friend I've seen a few times there. I actually met with him once, seemed like a decent man. But after a few minutes into his meeting with Gisborne, any respect I had for him changed."

"Did you hear what it was they were saying?" Robin asked again.

"Not really, no," he responded in frustration. "I could hear them say a few words here and there, something about you lot… Gisborne hating you and such I suspect, and I believe he mentioned something about the other guy owing him a favor I think. And then I finally saw Gisborne give your so called friend a money purse, looking quite full if I might add. It looked to me to be a bribe of some sort. I assumed then it might have been something to do with the tax collection. But if so, why would the three of them meet together? Look, I don't know much, but I followed after your friend to find out where he lived, then transformed myself into the Night Watchman, as he represents someone who strikes fear into those who are guilty of treason, which my act clearly did. He didn't admit his crimes of course, but I knew he was guilty."

Robin continued for him, "And then you robbed him, although he told me that you stole only the little money he had saved from the market, as well as all the food he had. Whatever the money Gisborne gave to my friend was meant for, it can't be good. I take it that you still have it?"

The Fool nodded as he pulled the back out from under his tunic he was wearing, then answered, "Of course I do. I would never steal blood money and then keep it. I was planning on coming to see you this afternoon, but you came to find me first, although I still managed to find you first after all."

"Thank you," Robin replied as he took the purse from the man and looked around for any sign of their other friends before they left the square. "Eventually, we'll have to get to the bottom of the conspiracy and find out who this out of town stranger really is, but we currently have something of more importance to take care of."

"Hopefully John and Tuck will have found the medicines Djaq needs by now," Much responded nervously, while keeping a lookout for any trouble. "We should leave here now so long as our luck is holding out."

The Fool looked between his friends as he asked, "Is someone ill, and did you just say Djaq? I thought she and Will remained behind in the Holy Land?"

Robin answered grimly, "Yes, but they're back and Will is the one who is sick. It's a long story. If you wish to come back with us, you are more than welcome. We've just got to find the others first. Let's get out of here."


	8. Chapter 8

Does He Understand Flight, the Pale One?

Chapter Eight

"Is there anything I can do for him?" Luke asked worryingly after almost forty-five minutes of silence once the rest of the outlaws had left, as he continued to sit at his brother's side. "I can't take this quiet any longer. I'm going crazy."

"That is what silence does to someone when they are afraid for the life of another," the Saracen woman responded as she motioned for the boy to carefully lift Will's head so that she could help him drink some more water, the motion waking him once again. "Believe me, I know what it feels like, all too well."

Will began to choke on the water after the third swallow as Djaq immediately apologized and pulled the flask away from her husband's lips, then she helped him to sit up a little higher as she asked softly, "Would you like some more?"

He shook his head slightly until he closed his eyes again when a wave of nausea overcame him and when it passed, he looked between Djaq and Luke, then spoke up weakly saying, "I'm alright. I'm…"

"You will allow me to say whether you are alright or not," his wife answered while she placed a pillow beneath his head so that he wasn't simply laying back against a cold, hard rock, then repositioned the blankets draped over his body as well. "You are most definitely getting better, but you are far from being alright."

"I can't disagree… agree with you," the older Scarlett brother replied as he looked into her eyes. "How did you… find… How did you get us… both home… alone?"

She quickly looked at Luke again, then back down at Will and responded, "With Allah's help I suppose. The point is we made it, the both of us. I feared what I might find when I finally found those soldiers' camp, but I never gave up the hope that I would find you. Do you remember anything, I mean with what happened on the night you were captured, or for as long as they held you prisoner?"

He closed his eyes to avoid looking at the woman he loved as well as at his brother and answered sadly, "What I remember… comes and goes. I see faces, but not… not too clearly. And I can re… remember their torture, most of it."

"Why did they do it?" Luke asked angrily. "Why would Saracens burn one of their own people's homes to the ground and take you prisoner, torture you for days, then just abandon their camp where they left you to die?"

"It is what many… of the English… would do if the situation… were reversed," Will replied in frustration. "We are both at war…"

Djaq gently laid one of her hands down across his chest to help keep him still as he began to cough and writhe from his agony, and the other on the back of his neck beneath his chin, then once he was settled, she worryingly finished for him, "He is saying that the Saracens were angry when they learned that we were not only protecting him, an Englishman, as I told the others, but angry too that we married. They saw it as a betrayal, so they punished my friend, Bassam, by burning down his home and took my husband on the night of our wedding to punish Will and me."

Will reached out for his brother's hand and grasped it tightly as he said, "Why… they left me to die… I don't know. Something… urgent came… up. I do not blame all Sar… Saracens, Luke. There is ev… evil in all races, especially… our own. Those men were evil, but I'm… still alive."

"Yes, but perhaps not for much longer," the man who had been watching them since before the rest of the outlaws had left stated as he stood before them, staring coldly at both Djaq and Luke while blocking their only path of escape. "That depends if your wife and brother cooperate."

"You!" Luke cried out in surprise as he and Djaq quickly stood in front of Will to protect him from the man Luke recognized as the man he had spoken to briefly in the forest before returning to the camp. "How did you…? What do you want?"

The stranger smiled smugly and responded, "I want to bring Robin Hood and his band of thieves to justice. Your brother and this Saracen is clearly two of them, but I don't believe you are too, son."

Luke glared at the man as he answered in anger, "I am not your son. And I won't let you take my brother."

"Luke!" Will called out as he struggled to sit up until Djaq quickly knelt down beside him to try to stop him. "Don't hurt…!"

"How dare you come here now to, arrest us I presume?" Djaq said coolly, looking up at the man with heat and fear in her eyes. "I don't care how you found us. My husband cannot be moved, he is too ill."

The stranger shrugged as he reached into his cloak and pulled out a sword from his scabbard, then replied, "I'm afraid that I didn't come to arrest you, but I am going to bring the three of you with me to someplace where we can wait for the rest of your friends to come find you. I suggest that you focus on helping him, rather than try to resist."

The younger Scarlett shouted, "Did you not hear what she said? He can't be moved, he could die!"

"I'll come," Will responded weakly as he continued to fight against his wife's protests until she gave up and carefully helped him to stand, with help from Luke, who rushed to his other side.

"We won't… won't fight you, but if you harm them…" Will threatened until he cut himself off.

He smiled again and then motioned for them to move out in front of them to leave the shelter as he answered smugly, "No harm will come to either of you so long as you don't resist me, at least until Hood comes for you."

As they were about to walk out, Djaq pulled a small knife from her hip and swiftly thrust it into the pillow Will had laid his head on before, then glared back at the stranger coldly as she replied, "There needs to be some sign of foul play, don't you agree? At the very least, you wouldn't want me carrying it to risk using it later to stab you through your heart; if you even have one."


	9. Chapter 9

Does He Understand Flight, the Pale One?

Chapter Nine

Once they started to walk back after waiting for John and Brother Tuck to catch up to them, Much spoke up again as he asked, "Look, it's obvious that something not right is going between your father's friend and Gisborne, I'm not disputing that, but why would your father's friend tell you about being robbed, if he didn't intend for you to investigate the theft? It doesn't really make a whole lot of sense now, does it?"

Robin looked back at him as he answered, "I agree, it doesn't make sense. However, we will deal with whatever is going on between them later, or when it becomes necessary. Right now, we have something more important to do."

"What I really want to know is, why hasn't Gisborne and his men attacked us by now?" Allan asked worryingly. "I mean, every time we come into town, we get attacked. That's just the way it is because our luck is nonexistent, or more like it's completely bad."

"Way to remain the optimist," Much replied sarcastically. "We ought to be grateful we haven't been attacked yet."

All of a sudden, the outlaws all heard Gisborne call out from the distance behind them as the man shouted, "Robin Hood!"

As he and the thieves all pulled out their weapons in preparation for the attack, Much glanced back at his friend, glaring at him and responded, "Allan, I bloody hate you, you know that? I hate you!"

"Just shut up and fight!" Robin yelled angrily, then charged against the oncoming soldiers followed closely by the rest of the outlaws.

The battle didn't last long as Robin and his men were easily able to dispense of the small troupe of soldiers, while Sir Guy stood in the distance to watch as the outlaws cut his men down, not killing them as the soldiers would do to the thieves if they were able to defeat them, but simply knocking them down until they were either unconscious or unable to fight any longer.

"I'm sorry to have to leave you so soon, Gisborne!" Robin shouted out to the man he saw was glaring at him from on a hill several feet away. "Perhaps if you fought with your men you might have stood a better chance against me and mine. I doubt it, but until next time!"

Once the outlaws were a safe distance away from those wanting to kill them, after they had finished making sure that Gisborne didn't have them followed, they all made their way back to their camp as Allan looked back at Much and said coolly, "That fight wasn't so much, was it, Much?"

Robin glared at his two men as he called out angrily, "That's enough! The two of you have been at each other's throats ever since Allan came back to us. I understand it will take longer for some of you to forgive him for betraying us before. It is taking me time too, but the important thing is that he realized his mistake and helped to save our lives when it counted. You will all stop your bickering and eventually, you'll come to respect one another again. Is that understood; Much, Allan?"

"Yes Master," Much answered ashamedly.

"Of course," Allan grumbled as he glared over at the man he still considered a friend, even if Much didn't feel the same way for him at the time. "Sorry, Robin."

Both John and the Fool laughed, while Tuck simply smiled at their friends' humiliation as Robin passed by them, then John, who carried the herbs with him, followed close behind their leader as they headed toward the shelter where Will was resting. However, when the two of them entered, they immediately knew that something was wrong upon seeing that their friends were no longer inside.

John was the first one to speak up as he stated, "It doesn't make sense that they're not here, Robin. They never would have left with Will being so ill."

Robin knelt down over the pillow where their wounded friend had laid his head and picked up the dagger, he recognized belonged to Djaq, then replied, "Not unless they were given no choice. Someone was here. Someone took them as prisoners."

"But that can't be!" Much responded worryingly after the rest of them came in behind them as Robin showed Tuck the knife. "I mean, no one else knows where our camp is other than us?"

"Well obviously that's not true now, is it?" their leader shouted again angrily, though it was clear that he wasn't really angry at his friends, but that three of them were once again in danger, one of whom was in danger of dying worse off than the others. "They can't be moving very fast. With Will in his condition, even with Djaq's and Luke's help…"

John pulled the herbs from the satchel he carried on him as he interrupted, "He won't last long if he is forced to travel far and even if whoever took them stays close, Will won't be able to hold on for long without these."

Much looked to his closest friend fearfully as he asked, "Master, what are we going to do?"

"We're going to find them," Robin answered resolutely. "Whoever took our friends, took Will thinking that they can use an ill man as leverage against Djaq and Luke. These men are going to find out exactly what happens to those who try to harm our own."

In the meantime…

Once the criminal and his prisoners had left the outlaws' camp, they had been travelling for over an hour when Djaq and Luke felt Will stumble as his body began to falter and hang heavier between them, needing his wife and brother to take on most of his weight despite how hard he tried to remain upright.

"We need to stop to rest," Luke called out to their captor walking behind them worryingly. "My brother can't keep going like this."

The man chuckled and then replied, "We'll rest when we've arrived at where we'll be hiding out until Guy of Gisborne and the Sheriff arrive."

Djaq kept her eyes between Will and the road ahead of them while they continued to walk as she responded, "So, they are the ones behind our capture. I thought as much."

"Only Gisborne was the one clever enough to use a bounty hunter to hunt down an outlaw as powerful as Robin Hood," the stranger answered smugly. "The Sheriff couldn't run this country without his second hand. In fact, he couldn't do anything without everyone else around always having to bail him out of the messes he causes for himself."

"Is that what Gisborne told you?" she asked. "What is it we should call you? Do you have a name?"

The man smiled as he replied, "I have a name. Call me Warin, Sir Warin of Gloucestershire. I was knighted two years ago when I took an arrow in shoulder for Prince John."

Djaq finally turned her head to look back at their captor as she responded with bravery, "Prince John is no more a nobleman than you or Gisborne are. Just because you both were knighted by a Prince, who will never be King, it doesn't make any one of you noble."

"The only one who will pay for words such as those will be the man that you love, Saracen," Warin answered cruelly as he walked around them while he pulled his sword once again and plunged the blade against Will's throat, cutting a long, shallow gash just beneath his chin, enough to make him whimper in pain no matter how hard he tried not to appear so weak in front of the vile man holding them captive.

"Stop!" Luke shouted in anger as he grabbed the blade with his free hand, not caring about being cut himself as he swiftly pushed it away from his brother's throat, then tightened his hold on Will, who weakly turned his head to look at the younger man with gratitude in his eyes until he could no longer keep his head up as his fever was once again becoming evident. "If there is anyone you want to punish, then let it be me."

The warrior stared at Luke with admiration until he finally turned to look over at Djaq as he replied, "Be grateful that I am well tempered and in awe at this boy's courage. The next time you say such words to me again, I will hurt your husband far worse than a simple nick to the throat."

Djaq glared at the man until he disappeared from her sight again when he moved behind them as they continued to walk onward, then she turned her eyes toward the younger Scarlett brother and asked worryingly, "Are you alright?"

"If you mean is my hand alright, then I'm just fine," he responded coldly, though his anger was not meant to be reflected at her. "But truthfully, I'm scared. Not for myself, not really, but Will is getting worse and we have no remedies or even bandages to treat him. What if Robin Hood and the rest of your friends won't be able to find us in time? It's as I said before, I can't lose Will too, not like we lost our mother and father."

"I promise you Luke, they will find us," she said with an unwavering confidence. "Do you want to know how I know this? Because, when I returned here to Sherwood Forest days ago with Will so near death, I was afraid then that I had failed him, that I was too late getting him back home, but Robin Hood appeared when I needed him most, as he does for so many. And not just Robin, but John, and Much, and Allan too. That is what they represent and why I fight with them. You will see."


	10. Chapter 10

Does He Understand Flight, the Pale One?

Chapter Ten

"We're here," Warin finally said coolly after he and his captives remained quiet for the last forty minutes since their earlier conversation, with the exception of a few murmurings between Djaq and Luke as Will continued to grow heavier the more they were forced to walk on, Luke having to take on most of his brother's weight when he had lost consciousness as Will was at least a head taller than the younger man and Djaq was several feet shorter. "I'm guessing you've seen this place before, maybe have even been here?"

"Yes, I have been here," Djaq replied worryingly as she observed their surroundings and stared at the large waterfall ahead of them. "We outlaws know nearly every inch of this forest. There is a cave hidden behind this waterfall. If you expect my husband to be able to survive long enough for Robin Hood and the others to find us, then a cool, damp cave is not a good place for us to hide."

The stranger pushed them forward, using the tip of his sword for motivation, as they stopped and tried to protest, then stated, "His life depends on you. I came across this cave in my travels. This is where we are going to wait for your friends, as well as my own. Now move inside and don't make me ask you twice for anything else."

As soon as they waded through the water and passed through the cascade to enter the cavern concealed behind it, the Saracen and the younger Scarlett became startled as a dog stood before them as it growled until it was ordered to stand down by its master, then Warin spoke again saying, "I assure you, he won't harm you unless you give him a reason to. This mutt only does as I tell him to. He helped me to find anyone who might be living here in this God forsaken forest as I searched for Robin Hood or any of his men and I sent him back here when I no longer needed him. He was how I was lucky enough to come across you, boy."

"And then I led you straight back to their camp," Luke answered ashamedly as it suddenly donned on him that it was because of his anger that they were all in danger, that Will was in danger of dying again because he had stormed off when he didn't want to listen to reason when his friends tried to help him. "This man came up to me in the woods after I left the camp to try to calm down. We spoke, though not for very long. But I did mention that I knew of Robin Hood and that I was angry because my brother was dying. I said too much and to a man I should have seen as an enemy. Oh God…!"

"This isn't your fault, Luke," Djaq swiftly responded after listening to her brother in law's admittance, hearing the fear in his voice. "You had no reason to be on your guard, as you have not had to learn to see everyone you do not know or trust as a danger to you. You were never trained as we have been."

They carefully laid Will down upon the cold, damp ground of the cave floor, then Luke shook his head and objected, "It doesn't matter. I should have seen it."

After the crusader whistled for his hunting dog to come to him and tied a small parchment around his neck, then quietly ordered him to go off to find the man with the same smell as the piece of fabric concealed in his hand, Sir Warin turned back to his captives as he smiled and said mockingly, "Go ahead and make yourselves as comfortable as you can. You're going to be here for awhile. And I suggest you lay something underneath his head, if you don't want…"

"Do not try to tell me how to take care of my husband!" Djaq interrupted angrily as she glared at the evil man standing over them. "I am a trained physician. And I know what I must do to help him. However, it will be far more difficult to do now that you have taken us away from our friends who had left our camp to get me the herbs and medicines I needed to tend to him. And I have no more bandages. Some of his wounds may have reopened. He is most likely bleeding out again."

"Luckily for you, I have some of my own bandages as well as a blanket," Warin replied as he quickly shuffled through his own satchel he carried with him, then tossed Djaq a small bundle of cloth already torn into strips and the blanket to Luke. "One can never be too prepared. I will leave you alone for now, but know that I won't be far. If you try to escape or do anything stupid to try to take me down, you will regret it. It is as I said before. Will will be the first one to suffer for your insolence."

Once the man left the cave, Djaq immediately got to work to help her husband as she pulled off the cloak she was wearing on their journey to their prison and folded it into a makeshift pillow, then placed it under Will's head, while Luke wrapped the blanket over his brother's body in hope that it would help to keep him warm enough, even though the cavern was cold and damp from being a part of the river that ran throughout Sherwood Forest.

Djaq winced upon pulling back the blanket over Will's left shoulder as she began to remove the clothing covering the knife wound in his shoulder, which caused the ill man to moan in pain despite remaining unconscious as she did so, then she leaned in close as she kissed her husband, and looked over at Luke as she asked, "This won't be easy for you, but are you willing to help me?"

The younger man looked back at her fearfully as he answered firmly, "Of course. What is it you need me to do?"

"I will need you to help me to keep him as still as possible while I work to treat and rewrap his wounds the best that I can without the proper supplies," she responded worryingly. "I still have my needle and thread I used to stitch closed his wounds before hidden in the sheath where I kept that dagger I tossed before leaving our camp, but I have nothing to sanitize it, other than this water from the river. It's possible that without cleaning the needle properly, it could cause his wounds to become infected. I believe that the water to be clean enough to drink, but this isn't all that concerns me. All that I do will be very painful for him, especially when he becomes more awake and he has already suffered far too much. I will not lie to you, I fear for his life."

"I appreciate your honesty," Luke replied sadly as tears fell down his eyes, then wept softly as he leaned down over his brother's body to hold him momentarily as if for reassurance that he was still alive and in hope that what little strength the younger man held still would be enough to pass along to the older Scarlett. "Please don't leave me, Will. I still need you."

Meanwhile…

Back in Nottingham, the Sheriff and Gisborne were in the middle of eating super when they suddenly heard several of their men begin to shout, then Vaisey stood, with a chicken leg in hand, as he asked in frustration, "What could they possibly be hollering about now?"

Gisborne had also stood as he made his way to the window and saw as the guards were busy trying to catch a large dog as it wondered into the courtyard, then make its way up the stairs in search for the man the beast was trying to sniff out. Without answering the man he served under, Guy quickly made his way down the castle's corridors to reach the animal and when it finally reached him, the dog stopped and stood still, waiting for Gisborne to take off the torn cloth binding the parchment around its neck.

The Sheriff came up behind his second in command as he asked again, "What is that you're reading and what is this mongrel doing here inside my castle?"

"This mongrel belongs to my friend out searching for Robin Hood's camp," Gisborne answered as he read the words written upon the small paper. "His own dog died on his journey here from Gloucestshire. I bought him a new one, a particularly vicious one, from Hood's father's old friend because he uses these beasts to hunt down his bounties. It appears that Warin has found Hood's camp and has taken three of Hood's men captive, while Robin and the rest of his men were out. We are to meet him at that cavern inside the waterfall a half mile inside of Sherwood Forest where we had battled against the outlaws and you nearly got killed by your own traitor."

"I remember," Vaisey responded coldly as he quickly finished eating and armed himself as he prepared to leave. "It's a real pity that Robin doesn't trust his old friend enough to tell him where it is he is hiding or we would have had them hanging a long time ago; would have saved us a hell of a lot of trouble and we wouldn't have to trust a bounty hunter or his dog. Let's get going."

Back in Sherwood Forest…

It was some time before Will reawakened during his wife's ministrations and until he did, neither Djaq nor Luke said another word to each other while they worked. It was while the Saracen physician was busy trying to re-stitch one of the larger lacerations on his chest from the whipping he had received from her own people that the man she loved began to struggle and cried out in pain. His eyes opened and despite being barely able to see, he could tell he was being taken care of.

She smiled down at him as she stopped for a moment and gripped his hand, then whispered, "Just take it easy. We're both still here. We are taking care of you. I have had to stitch up the knife wound in your shoulder again, as well as several of your lashes. They reopened on our way here and you lost a lot of blood. It's why you lost consciousness before we arrived."

Will looked at her the best he could as he asked, "Are you… and Luke al… alright?"

"You need to stop worrying so much about us," Luke replied in frustration as he leaned forward into Will's line of sight. "You're the only one who's hurt. We're both fine."

"You're m… mad," Will stated again as he looked into his brother's eyes and saw nothing, but anger.

Luke's eyes softened as he answered worryingly, "I'm only mad at the monsters responsible for hurting you, all of them."

Will tensed up as Djaq stuck the needle back into his flesh to continue to sew, then apologized and spoke again saying, "We're afraid. Your fever has risen again and some of these lashes are starting to become infected, but you will hold on for as long as it takes. Do you hear me?"

"Will?" she asked again when his eyes closed and didn't answer right away.

"I hear you," he finally responded while his eyes remained closed, being too weak to keep them open any longer as his consciousness was fading, but didn't succumb to it completely. "I'm still with… with you. I'm not ready… to let them win."

She briefly looked over at Luke as she smiled and replied, "You see, that is why I love your brother. He is strong and true, and he fights for all that he believes in, no matter how difficult it may be."

Warin walked back inside the cave and said smugly, "I wanted to come in to see how he was doing."

"Like you really care," Djaq answered coldly without turning her head to look at their captor. "He is holding on, but exactly how long will he have to?"

"As you already know, that all depends on Robin Hood," the stranger responded smugly as he dog entered behind him. "It's a real shame that your friends are not as punctual as mine. Gisborne and the Sheriff have just arrived."

Both Vaisey and Guy walked in as well, as the Sheriff chuckled when he saw their ally's hostages and stated, "So it's true then. Sir Warin, you have done very well."

Gisborne walked forward as both Djaq and Luke leaned over in front of Will in order to protect him, then he looked over at Djaq as he spoke up asking, "So, the outlaw you love is still alive?"

"Perhaps for not much longer it seems," The Sheriff replied cruelly as he came to stand over them too, then swiftly reached down, roughly grabbing Djaq by her arm to pull her up as Will weakly tried to help her while Luke struggled to keep him down. "You and your lover down there have caused me a lot of trouble, but then you remained behind in Jerusalem after our failure to defeat King Richard. You were free so why would you return now?"

"Our business is our own," she answered defiantly. "You don't really care why we have returned, only that we have. And you have yourself leverage against Robin Hood, so now you must be feeling particularly smug, believing that you have finally found a way to defeat your greatest enemy. However, you've had leverage before and you always failed, just as you will again."

Gisborne grabbed hold of Luke as well, as both he and Djaq were dragged away from the ill man while they struggled against them, then Warin spoke again as he asked, "What about the husband?"

Vaisey shook his head in disbelief and responded, "I never believed I would live to see an Englishman in love with a Saracen, let alone marry one. It's a real pity. This one is a traitor to England. Kill him."

"No!" both Djaq and Luke cried out fearfully in unison, fighting hard to break free of their captors' hold on them, when the hunter pulled his sword from his scabbard as he stood over Will, who struggled to back away while Warin advanced on him, then thrust the blade down through the carpenter's left hand as he tried to dodge the blow, causing him to scream.

"Not this time, Sheriff!" Robin shouted as he and then others all appeared through the falls and immediately shot an arrow into the bounty hunter's back to kill him before he could kill Will, while both Vaisey and Gisborne swiftly put daggers to their own prisoners' throats and held them out in front of them. "Let them go. You know that if you harm them anymore, we will be forced to kill you both and don't think for a moment that we won't hesitate."

The Sheriff just laughed and then he replied, "You know that if you kill me, then you sign the deaths of all of your people, remember? War will come right here to Nottingham and you will no longer be the hero whom everyone worships, but the man who destroyed England once and for all."

Much stood at his friend's side ready to fight as he quickly glanced at him, then kept his eyes on their other friends and their enemies ahead of them and spoke up saying nervously, "He's right, Master. What are we going to do?"

"We can't start a war, Robin," John added angrily. "This, we cannot do."

All of a sudden, Will kicked out at the back of Gisborne's legs, as everyone's attentions were no longer focused on him, succeeding to knock Guy off balance which allowed Luke to break free and punch the Sheriff in the side of his head so that he would release Djaq as well. They both rushed to Will's side while the rest of the outlaws fought swords against the two evil men ruling England in King Richard's absence. Unfortunately, the two criminals were not alone, as the dog pounced on John who fought to pry him off with his staff.

"You are outnumbered, Gisborne!" Robin shouted as he pulled his own sword and began to fight against the second in command, while Much and Allan fought Vaisey and Brother Tuck went to help Djaq and Luke with Will, who had fallen unconscious after his efforts to help his friends. "What should we do with them, boys?"

"How about we finish the fight first, then we can decide what to do with them," Allan answered in frustration.

Once Robin and the others had their enemies disarmed on their knees before them, and John had finally been able to take down the dog that attacked him, the big man rushed over to Will and handed Djaq the parcel containing the herbs and extra bandages he knew that she would need for him. Djaq looked at him kindly as tears slipped from her eyes, then nodded her head to express her gratitude and refocused her attention on her husband after taking the supplies.

Robin glared down between Gisborne and the Sheriff as he knelt down before them, then said coldly, "I wish I could kill you both, but even if it wasn't for Prince John's decree of war should you end up dead, Vaisey, you both know my men and I do not kill unless we are given no choice, like with your friend over here. And the men you left outside are of no help to you. You better pray Will lives because if he doesn't, I will be back to visit you in Nottingham and you will regret seeing my face. Do you understand me?"

The Sheriff smiled and responded smugly, "Your words are nothing, but petty threats, Hood. One day, you will end up dead and if I am lucky, then so will all of your men here, as well as that Saracen women you have fighting for you. Her English lover will die first and then I will come for her."

"Not today you won't!" John Little replied in anger as he swiftly knocked both villains out cold with a single punch to the sides of their heads. "I'm sorry, I could not listen to that any longer. Let's just leave them here and get back to our camp so that Will can be treated properly. This cold and wet is not doing him any favors."

"Yes, but first we will need to make a travois to carry him back," Robin answered nervously as he looked down at Will, seeing for the first time just how bad off he really was.

Allan saw his friend too, then looked to Djaq as he added, "We have more blankets outside on our horses, but we didn't bring them, for obvious reasons. We didn't want to get them wet."

She nodded and then turned to Robin as she asked, "How did you find us?"

"When we couldn't track you, we figured that Gisborne and Vaisey had something to do with your abductions so we made our way into Nottingham as fast as possible to find them and followed them as they left to come here," he responded. "Explain what happened to us later once Will is taken care of. How are you doing? And Luke?"

"He never laid a hand on us," Luke replied angrily. "He only hurt Will. And now, you're just going to allow the Sheriff and his right hand to go free, just like that? They deserve to die! They will never stop!"

Brother Tuck helped John pull Will up into his arms, then as they passed under the waterfall, the priest turned back to the younger Scarlett and answered calmly, "It's over now, your brother is still alive, and the man who hurt him has paid for his cruelty with his life. Release your anger or it will destroy you."

Luke looked at him as he responded, "I don't know if I can."

"You can, because Will was able to forgive the Sheriff after he had your father killed," Djaq replied remorsefully. "And his strength is inside of you. I have seen it."

"And Luke, if you can learn to let go of your anger and hate, would you like to…?" Robin added. "I mean, you have always been a part of us even though you haven't been fighting alongside us, but if you wish to remain among us and fight against their evil plots, so long as Will agrees of course, then we would be honored to have you join with us."

Luke smiled as he looked around at the remaining members of Robin Hood's band of thieves and then answered, "Thank you. Maybe someday soon, but I need some time to sort all of this out. I need time to figure out if I can be the man my brother is."

Robin nodded and responded, "You are welcome to join us any time. Now come on, let's get out of here so we can get back to our camp and get Will better."

Nearly a month later…

"Why are you out here all alone?" Djaq asked her husband after she had been searching for him for a few hours out among the forest when he left the camp, finally finding him lying upon a branch inside a tree. "We've all been looking for you because we were worried about you."

"I'm alright," the carpenter replied quietly as he struggled to move his injured hand to show her that it was healing, as were the rest of his wounds and lacerations. "I was following your birds. They've been staying close to our camp, close to you I suspect, because they know how much you love them."

She answered sincerely, "It isn't only me whom they stay close to any longer, Will. They love you because you have loved and cared for them as I have."

He smiled as he looked down at her and responded, "I suppose I've been keeping my eyes on them because they're all we have left of what we almost had together in the Holy Land. I am so sorry that I failed to protect our home, my love."

"Jerusalem was only once my home," his wife replied as she raise her arm above her head in motion for him to come down and watched nervously as he struggled to climb back down using his only good hand.

"We may have lived there together briefly, but in truth it wasn't really where we belonged," she continued once he was clear of the tree and standing before her again, then checked him over to make sure he was alright as he claimed. "But though you loved our pigeons and took upon my friends as your own family, it doesn't mean it was where you were really happy. Here, with Robin Hood, John, Allan, even Much, and now Brother Tuck too, this is where you are truly happy, Will. When I first found you after you were taken prisoner, you were riddled with fever, barely alive and incoherent. But some of what you spoke was of our adventures here and I realized how much you missed our real home. How much you missed our lives here. Why did you not tell me?"

Will looked at her in confusion as he answered, "Because I knew that you wanted to remain where you were the most happy. I loved the Holy Land, but my brother is here and fighting with Robin Hood…"

The woman he loved interrupted him as she leaned closer and stood on her toes to kiss him, then she responded, "It is when we are both the happiest. Here is where we are home, so long as we are together. I almost lost you. You risked your life not only for me and for our pigeons, but you saved as many of my family and friends as you could. You should be proud of that. Why feel guilty for the sins which are not yours, especially in regards to Hazar?"

"It was Hazar who went to Salah ad Din seeking help to rid her home of the English, of me," he replied sadly. "As I was fighting after we separated inside Bassam's house, I overheard her pleading with one of the soldiers to spare her life and the lives of everyone else except for mine before the man killed her with her sword. I killed him in return and tried to keep her alive, but she died in my arms, just after she asked me why she and her people should have been made to suffer because of me."

"You are not to blame for her death, nor the deaths of all the others who died on the night of our wedding," Djaq answered softly as her husband pulled her into his arms and held her close. "You a good man. And I will remind you of that every morning and every evening of every day if I must. Now, we should return to the camp. Luke and the others are throwing us a little celebration tonight in honor of our return and our marriage. We will finally be able to celebrate and this time we are among our closest friends, our family, the way that it always should have been. I love you, Will Scarlett."

Will kissed her once more, then ran his good hand gently along her face as he looked into her eyes and responded, "And I love you, Saffiya, for all that you are."

The End


	11. Thank You

Thank you to all of those who have read my story! I would love to know what you thought, if you could send me a review. It would be much appreciated. I'm honored to have you all for fans and I hope to hear from you all in the future. Best of wishes to each of you!

Sincerely,

Genevieve Kelly


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